Corruption becomes Jharkhand poll plank

RANCHI: The recent raids on former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda by income tax (I-T) and enforcement directorate (ED) officials have brought corruption at the centre stage of Jharkhand politics.

The JMM, which released its manifesto on Sunday, has promised to put an end to corruption in the state. Though the Congress and the BJP are yet to release their manifesto, their leaders said the issue will be a major election plank.

Senior Congress leader and Union minister for food processing Subodh Kant Sahay said corruption will be a major issue in the state assembly elections. "While we favour thorough enquiry into corruption charges during the Madhu Koda regime, we also want that the same should be done for the Arjun Munda tenure as well," he said.

Former Union external affairs minister and senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said: "While we welcome probe into illegal deals by Madhu Koda, we would also like the investigating agencies to probe the involvement of industrial houses and the bureaucrats as well. In fact, the Centre should set up a commission to probe the entire gamut of the Madhu Koda scam."

Mr Sinha added that the CBI should also be asked to probe into the matter since ED and I-T have certain limitations. "Since there is a transaction of huge amount to foreign countries, only CBI can ask other countries for details," he said.

Besides the Koda scam, cases of corruption against former Independent ministers like Ainosh Ekka, Harinarayan Rai, Bandhu Tirkey and Kamlesh Singh are also likely to figure during the campaigning. The vigilance department is investigating corruption charges against them.

The Congress, which had supported Koda-led UPA government, promised it will keep a distance from tainted politicians after the elections. Party spokesperson Radha Krishna Kishore said "The party will not take support from any tainted politician, even if the need arises post-polls.

The BJP has also assured that it would not like to support any leader involved in corruption. "We would, in fact, like the people to vote for us in a big way so that need for a coalition does not arise," said state BJP president Raghubar Das.